Machine for shaping shoes



Feb. 14, 1933. w, D, THOMAS 1,897,086

MACHINE FOR SHAPING SHOES Filed Deo. 6, 1929 2 Shee-tfswbeet l Feb. 14, 1933.

w. D. THOMAS MACHINE FOR SHAPING SHOES Filed Deo. 6, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 11u. llllxll..-

R 16 /NVENTUR ga/TEM 40 they are expanded in a widthwise direction.

Patented Feb. 14, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WILLIAM D. THOMAS, OF LYNNFIELD, IVIASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATTERSON, NEW JERSEY, .A GORORATION OF NEW JERSEY MACHINE FOR SHAPING SHOES Application led December 6, 1929. Serial No. 412,236.

This invention relates to machines for shaping shoes and is herein illustrated as embodied in a machine for shaping the toe portion of a turn shoe after it has been turned. The illustrated machine may be used for shaping the toe portion of a special type of turn shoe known as a comfort slipper, and the invention will be set forth in relation to this particular use, although the utility of the invention is not limited to operations upon comfort slippers.

In the manufacture of comfort slippers, the upper, wrong-side out, is sewed through-andthrough to the sole and then turned right-side Y out. The toe of a shoe thus made is iiat and shapeless. An object of the present invention is to provide a machine for imparting shape and fullness to the toe portion of a shoe.

In accordance with one feature of the invention, means are provided which are eX- pansible within a shoe to stretch the shoe both widthwise and heightwise upon continuous movement in a single direction of an operating member, the widthwise expansion being preferably initiated before the heightwise expansion in order to maintain the sole of Jche shoe flat. If the heightwise expansion were to be initiated first, or even simultaneously with the initiation of the widthwise movement, the eifect might be to tend to draw the edge portions of the flexible sole upwardlv around the expansible means. The illustrated expansible means comprises a pair of relativelp7 thin bladelike members constructed and arranged for edgewise engagement with the interior of the shoe. These two members are designed to present fiat surfaces to the sole of the shoe and to bear with edgewise pressure against the interior of the shoe as Expansible members of the character above described mav be received within shoe without bulging the shoe in a heightwise direction and "it iout, therefore, tending o pull the edges of the flexible sole upwardly around the members.

In accordance with a further feature ofthe invention. the illustrated expanding members comprise a pair of U-shaped levers, the two arms of each lever being constructed ann arranged to entend within and outside respectively' of the shoe, the outside arms serving to render the expanding members engageable for operation at a point outside of the shoe. An advantage of this construction resides in the fact that the portions of the expanding members within the shoe do not need to be recessed or otherwise weakened to'provide room for an operating means. A further advantage resides in the fact that the freedom of space aii'orded outside of the shoe permits the engaging portions ofthe operating means and the expanding members to be designed in such a. manner as to secure the greatest mechanical advantage and also to reduce friction.

The invention further consists in various features of construction and combinations an d arrangements of parts herein shown and claimed, the advantages of which will be apparent to those skilled inthe art from the foregoing description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a machine embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged plan view of the operative instrumentalities of the machine shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation 4of the parts shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. l is a cross-sectional view taken on the line IV-IV of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary side elevation showing a modification of certain mechanism illustra-ted in the foregoing figures.

The machine is provided with a suitable base having an integral tubular standard 12, a tubular upright member 14 which is clamped in the standard 12 and which, in effect, constitutes an extension thereof, and a head 16 which carries the operative instrumentalities of the machine and which is secured by means of a set screw 18 to the top of the member 14e.

For stretching the shoe in a widthwise di-v rection a pair of members 2O and 22 are provided. lhe members 2O and 22 are journaled respectively upon pivot pins 24E, the pivot. pins 24 being parallel to each other and horizontal andeach ofthem being secured' at its central portion by'a set screw 26 to the head 16 which is bored to receive the pins 24. The members 20 and 22 are yoke-shaped so as to bear upon each of the ends of their respective pins 24y while straddling the central portionr.,thereof` Each o .tthe. members 20- and 22 ,;";is.- ;provic'le`d with an upstandingarm 28 adapted to enter the forepart of. theshoe to be treated. Each of the arms 28'has se-A curedfl thereupon \a-rel-ativelyA thin= blade-like fltplatefBO- 'fhepllates 30 extend'outwardi 'ly beyond their Vrespective arms 28, so that the plates 30 may enter intoedgewis'e!en-v gagement overrelatively narrow areas with Y the interior of the shoe 'upperiwhile the'flat bottomsurfaces of .the plateslare presentedf. t oth1e. .sole vportion; .of 'the shoe;` The plates 3Q; are` formed "so lthat their.; adjacent edges mygoverlap eachother. when themembers 4293.52.05 and22 atei in.. uneXpandedf position, .and

the: plteO., 0n fthe Amember-2O is provided wtlilan extension .32j at the toes-end to overl `lap,fasimilarextension ,34.onthe toe end of thesmilar plateBOfonthemember 22 `so thatV v even ,whenfthemembe'rsf 20l and, 22 are. in. eX-y plndedlposition AVthe extension 32 -will over-v .lpytleextenson.34. Eachof the 1 memA ber s 20. and l22 hasf formed :thereon an up; 1 standing armldwhich,carries a roller V38,' 399 tlieXes offthe rollers 38. being Vparallel toi-the.` axes of the pivot pins 24.l At'the rear end o.. each ozthe :membersf:l and .'22 is 1an, up-j standnggarm 40,7.,'andf connectingthe armsr .Y '40;,is` atension spring, 42` which .tends .nfor- Inallyrto ,heldlthe-- membersi20 a n d 221in.` unex@ pandedpositioniasfdetermnedby a ,pairof aldtiustablestop, screws 44 y,carried-I 'byfthe re--l spectivesm-embersand122.; Y c Y Themembersf-20. and-.22 are.. operated lto iQUe'ect aV widthwiseV movement of; separation between the Aupstand-ingarms,.28 by means of awedge .-sh ape'd :camv 46 which enterszbetween y the rolls 38'and orces'the armskf outward-- lyi.. The-namnis carriedguponfthe endo'a Y iena lever 48 ulcrumed upon a pimOwhichmisf;

50Ulever 48 is bifurcatedandcarriessha-tfd i A heightwise stretching member is formed in the shape of a bell crank having a horizontal arm 74 and an upstanding arm 76 pin 8G secured the headl Thefreel-end" 82v ofthe arm 74 Lis bi-urcated andstradolles `the rod 60. A nut 84 threaded upon .the-rod 60- and provided with a lock nut 86 engages the bifurcated end 82 of the heightwise stretchingmembertooperate the same whenV theitreadle .70 is-depressed...A A plmigerf88, having ,a spring 90 ,the stress of which may bleV adjustedlby; a vsorelw 92, guidedjin the h'eadflG ,and exerts an ,upright thrustupon the lower' surface of the larm ,7 4 .normallyjtoj` maintain, the heightwise'4 stretchingmember- 'in funexpandedposition. A downwardly exs.

tendi'ng'stop` :screw 94, ,which iisy threaded in. theheadlengages vthe upper surfaceo the. armA ,74 to-V limit thek closing movement ,and-4.

thereby determines the unexpanded- .posi-tion ofthe heightwise stretching member. AJ lcl nut ,96;h`oldsa stop` screw 94inadj usted Lposij. v

tion.

nl the V@pentirai @fthe menne a 1amelie placed in upright position .upon the arms28' and the farm 7 6, vwhich extend within the forfepart .of the shoe, ,and withthe4 plates 280'. acf.

ingtowardfthe soleof vthe shoe.4 -In liligs.y l" and 4is shown 'a comfort slipper, havin a thick, ,padded` soleS-and an upper Uwhich, has been turned'. and which ,isnowto be2 shaped bythe machine.V .The slipper having,v

been ,placed Sas. above. describedV and as illus;-

trate'd in Eig. land Fig; 4,v the treadle 7 0 :isf

depressed, thereby, causing ythe spring 66 to act;up.on the -lever-48 and raise `the' cam 46 between thevrollers38. Itzwill be .notedthat. the arms 36and 28,r together with -the bodv` portions of the members 20 and22, constitute llt-.shaped leversof: which ,Y one arm28 is adapted to extend lwithinithe l forepart ofthe; shoe and k,the other arm 864 is adapted to err-.- tendoutside of theshoeand to'faiiord ameans, `for separating'gthe varms-28 a'ndvQeXpanding, theplates 30.1 The raising of ther-.cam 46lthus`v expands the widthwise stretching ,members 8O -underthe predetermined pressure of theV spring-66. As the plates 30 expand,y their; outer edges lexert pressure against the in'- terior ofthe shoe upper, maintainingfthesoley tant .and lfiat and imparting fullness tothe upper.` lAfter the widthwise stretching oaty the sli-piper has thus been initiated the nut84 engages the-end 68 of the `lever-74 and causes thev arm 76vto move in a counterclockwisedi# rection as lviewed in Fig.` l, therebyv causing a stretching of the forepart upper'toproduce Y The initiation Y j of the-movement ofthe heightwise ,stretching:,v

addi-tional fullness' therein.

arm 7 6 with respect to the amount of expansion of the widthwise stretching arms 2S can be varied by adjusting the nut 84 up or down on the rod 60. The nut 84 should be so adjusted with respect to the type or size of the slipper that the plates will already have been expanded suficiently to cause the distance between the outer edges of the plates 30 to exceed the width of the sole S, before beginning the movement of the arm 76. The sole of the slipper is thus held taut and flat by the bladelike plates 30, with the result that, when the arm 76 is urged against the upper U, the danger of drawing the edge portions of the iiexible sole S up over the outer edges of the plates 30 is reduced to a minimum. It will be noted that, because of the positions of their respective pivots, the plates 30 and the arm 7 6 exert their stretching effects upon the toe portion of the slipper and that such stretching effects will be confined almost exclusively to the toe portion. While the operation of the illustrated machine has been described with particular reference to comfort slippers, the illustrated machine may be advantageously employed to conduct shaping operations upon other types of shoes.

In F ig. 5 is shown a modification of the machine whereby a wiping effect of the heightwise stretching member T6 may be obtained. ln this modification, the pin 80, upon which is fulcrumed the bell crank comprising the arms 76 and 74, is not secured directly to the head 16 but to the outer end of a lever 08 which is fulcrurned at 100 upon the head 16. The inner end of the lever 9S is held down by means of a tension spring 102 secured to the head 10, the tension of the spring' 102 being adjustable by means of a bolt lOl upon which are threaded a nut 106 and a lock nut 10S. An adjustable stop 110 is 'threaded in the head 16 extending upwardly therefrom and engages the under surface of the lever 98 to limit the position thereof under influence of the spring 102 and thus to determine the normal position of the fulcrum pin 80. A lock nut 112 holds the stop screw 110 in adjustable position. The operatien of this modified form of the machine is the same in all respects as has already been described except that when the downward pressure of the nut 84 on the arm Til of the heightwise stretching member exceeds a certain amount and the arm 76 with the heightwise stretching member is prevented from further countercloclwise movement, as viewed in Fig. 5, by he shoe, the spring 102 will yield and permit the entire heightwise stretching member to move bodily,

thereby causing the arm 76 to effect a wiping action upon the interior of the shoe. ln case such wiping action is not desired, the outer end of lever 9S may be supported by a removable strut 1111, and the operation of this form of the machine will then be similar to that of the machine illustrated in F ig. 1.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. In a machine for shaping shoes, means constructed and arranged to expand within a shoe to stretch the shoe both widthwise and heightwise, and means constructed and arranged upon continuous movement in a single direction to operate said stretching means to initiate the expansion thereof first in a widthwise direction and then in heightwise direction.

2. In a machine for shaping shoes, means constructed and arranged to expand within a shoe to stretch the shoe both widthwise and heightwise, means constructed and arranged upon a single movement to operate said stretching means to initiate the expansien thereof first in a widthwise direction and then in a heightwise direction, and means for adjusting said operating means to initiate the heightwise expansion of said stretching means after the widthwise expansion of said stretching has proceeded to a predetermined extent.

3. ln a machine for shaping shoes, a pair of members constructed and arranged to expand within a shoe in a direction widthwise of the shoe to stretch the shoe, a third member constructed and arranged for relative movement with respect to the two first-mentioned members in a direction heightwise of the shoe to stretch the shoe upper, and operating means for said members constructed and arranged upon a single movement to initiate the expansion of the two first-men* tioned members prior to the initiation of the relative heightwise movement of the third member.

L1. ln a machine for shaping shoes, a pair of relatively thin blade-like members adapted to enter into edgewise engagement with the interior of a shoe, said members being constructed and arranged for relative movement of expansion with respect to each other within the shoe to stretch the shoe.

5. ln a machine for shaping shoes, a pair of relatively thin bladelile members constructed and arranged for edgewise engage- .ient over relatively narrow areas with the interior of a shoe vupper adjacent to the sole of the shoe and to present iiat surfaces re-y spcctively to the sole, and means for expanding said members within the shoe widthwise of the shoe to stretch the shoe.

6. A machine for shaping shoes, comprising a pair of lil-shaped levers each of which has pair of arms adapted to extend resp-ectively within and outside of the forepart of a shoe to be treated, each of said arms beconnected by an intermediate portion adapted to extend out ide of the shoe, pivotal vsupporting means for the intermediate pormovement Yof separation between f said arms Y Whichare. adapted to extend Withinthe fore- `partof the shoeto expand the forepa-rt,and

operating means constructed andarranged to engage saidarmswvhich are adaptedtoex- Vtend Y. outside of the :shoe'for causing said or-relative'movement of separati'onbetween, thearms which are adaptedl-toextend Within relativemovement. A.

7. A machine for shaping shoes, compris-V ingithi'ee levers each'of .Whichhasa pairof Iarmsadapted to extend respectively Within and outside of a shoe, .pivotalsupporting means for i said-.levers constructed and arranged ,toprovide' for movements of separation betweenftlieinvvardly extending arms of said levers to stretch the shoe in both alvvidth- WiseAA and a heightvvise direction, and means movable ina-predetermined pathrto operate all of said levers, theoutwardlyextending' arms of all of said leversibeingv disposed .inf the Vpath.ofarr'iovement offsaid operating er hasapair of arms adapted to extend respectively Within-and.A outside of a shoe, pivotal supporting means for said levers: to provide the-shoe, said nio-vement orseparation serving" to etect'stretchingof the shoe,.a pivot-r l Y ally-mounted bell-cranlr-lever having anarm said U-shaped levers to eEect additional extending V,Within the shoev and Van -armfextending outside or' the slice` the inwardly extending arm ofsaid bellicrank co-operating with the inwardly-extending' arms of stretching of the shoe, and means movable in a vpredetermined lpath. to operate all of said levers, the outwardly extending arms of all of said levers being disposed in the path .of `lirio'vei'nent oit said r operating Y means.

,"9. Ina-machine-or shaping shoes, means constructed and arranged to expand Within "a, shoeto stretch the shoe in a Widthvvise direction,ineans co-operatingivith said Width- Wise stretchingmeans to stretch the shoe in a heightivise direction, Vand operating means for both of ksaid stretching meansv comprising a member constructedand arranged upon *movement in one direction to. engage saidV Widthvvise stretching 4means, and then upon continued movement in the same direction,A

to engage said heighttvise stretching means. 10..-Iii a machine fory shapingshoes, means Y constructed and nrranged` to expand Within imo Wise stretching means tol stretch the shoefinV a heightwise direction, an. actuating rod, a

' memberr-carried-by said'rod for operatively engagin'gsaid Widthwise expandingmeanaf -and amembermountedfonsaid rodfor adother tvvo members ina heightwise direction,

and ;operating means engaging saidmembers outside of the shoe to causesaid relative movements.

12.',:A machine-forgshaping shoes, comprising a pair of levers each of which hasl an arm adapted to extend Within vthe forepart of ka 'shoe togbeftreated' and an arm adapted to extend outside of the shoe, pivotal supporting means-forV said levers to provide vfor .relative e v e V Y movement ef separation between said arms l f8. A machine for shaping` shoes, compris-y inga pair ofU-shapedlevers each of Which Y orepart 'of the shoe and havingV an arm adaptedV to .extend outside of the-shoe, pivotal supporting means or-,saidthird lever to provide for-relativezmovement of? the arm off said Vthird lever which is adapted to extend-Within the" orepart of` lthe shoe; saidV relative move- Vmentbeingr in a directionheightvvise ofthe shoe andvvith respect to the arms of said pair of levers which are adapted to extend Withthe shoe, and a support for one of said mem-V bersfsaidV support being inountedfforv yielding movement in Na Vdirection lengthwise of the shoe to enable thesupportedmember to effect a lengthwisev wiping` action upon Vthe .514. In p rality of members constructed .and'arranged' -to provide `for relative separation between them Within a'shoe toexpandthe shoe, means toicausing an additional relative. movement ashlee Stretch the siloeimwidthwise drj between me and another of Sad members to rection, means co-'operating with said Width! e'ect-a wiping actionbetween said one 'ineinber` and the shoe, and means for prevent,-

ing said additional relative movement :when

v said wiping action isnot desired.

115. InA a machine for shaping shoes, a pair ofmemb'e'rs constructed andY arranged to 'pro- 'inthe orepart, and operating means con- `s'tructed and arranged to engage said arms of Jr`or. shaping shoes, a-plua machinefor shaping shoes, aplui .vide-'forv relative separation between them vvithin'a shoe Vto expand'the shoe in` a4 Width-V wise direction, a third member, and pivotal supporting means for the third-mentioned member constructed and arranged to provide for consecutive movements of the thirdmentioned member, first heightwise of the shoe to eEect a heightwise stretching of the shoe and then lengthwise of the shoe to effect a wiping action upon the shoe.

16. In a machine for shaping shoes, means for supporting the forepart of a shoe, a bell crank lever having one arm adapted to extend inside and another arm adapted to extend outside of the orepart of the shoe, a fulcrum for said bell crank lever positioned to cause said arm which is adapted to extend inside of the shoe to exert a heightwise stretching action upon the shoe when said other arm is moved in a direction lengthwise of the shoe, and a yieldable support for said fulcrum constructed and arranged to permit said bell crank lever to move bodily in a direction lengthwise of the shoe during said lengthwise stretching action to cause said inside arm t'o wipe the shoe in a lengthwise direction.

17. In a machine for shaping shoes, a plurality of members constructed and arranged for relative separation between them within a shoe to expand the shoe, and a support for one of said members, said support being mounted for yielding movement to permit slippage between the supported member and the shoe, whereby the supported member exerts a wiping action upon the shoe.

18. A machine for shaping shoes, comprising a. pair of relatively thin bladelike members adapted to enter into edgewise engagement with the interior of a shoe upper adj acent to the sole of the shoe, means for expanding said members within the shoe in a direction widthwise of the shoe to cause them to exert localized pressure against the interior of the shoe upper, and means operable to stretch the shoe upper in a heightwise direction while said thin bladelike members are expanded by said expanding means.

In`testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specication.

WILLIAM D. THOMAS. 

